IUP String Project Accepting Applications for Fall 2019

Posted on 8/26/2019 8:43:42 AM

The IUP String Project, a community music education outreach
program for children ages five to 18 in Indiana and the surrounding area, is now
accepting applications for private lesson instruction on violin, viola, cello,
and bass.

Applications are due on
September 6. An IUP String Project Open
House will kick off the season on Saturday, September 14, at 11:15 a.m. in
Cogswell Hall, Room 126. Lessons will begin
the week of September 16. For more information and an application,
please visit the String Project website or contact Linda Jennings at ljenning@iup.edu or 724-357-2649.

The IUP String Project curriculum consists of weekly private
lessons and group lessons scheduled at different times throughout the year.
Lessons are 30 minutes to one hour in length, depending upon the age and
advancement of each student. Ensemble classes designed to reinforce concepts
and techniques learned in private lessons as well as develop other musical
skills, such as ensemble playing, leadership skills, etc. are included in the
program. At the end of each semester students also have the opportunity to
perform solo and ensemble pieces on recitals. Lessons, group classes, and
recitals take place on the IUP campus and are taught by IUP music students. The
IUP String Project is designed to support the string programs in the public
schools. Therefore, all students enrolled in the IUP String Project must also
be enrolled in their school orchestra program, if one is available.

The IUP String Project is also provides a teacher-training
program for IUP music students who are the teachers in the program. The program provides hands-on practical
experience teaching one-on-one lessons, as well as teaching groups in a
classroom setting and conducting a string orchestra. In addition, teachers gain
invaluable experience participating in recruiting programs in public and
private schools, gaining teaching ideas and guidance at regular pedagogy
meetings, and receiving feedback on their teaching. The teachers are supervised by the IUP String
Faculty members and by the IUP String Project Master Teacher Swana Chepaitis.

The IUP String Project is one of 43 similar
programs joined under the auspices of the National
String Project Consortium, dedicated to promoting string music education in
the United States. As a member of the NSPC, the IUP String Project joins in
addressing the two main issues facing string education today: 1) the low
numbers of public schools that offer string music education programs to
children and 2) the critical shortage of string teachers in the United States.